The Road to Le MansThe Ford GT series closes out with a look at its racing goal in France
By Steve Turner
Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company

Tomorrow the day is upon us. The Ford GT makes its historic return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans. In celebration of that milestone, Ford Performance is closing out its five-part documentary series, titled The Return, about the car’s development. Today the fifth and final chapter, titled The Road to Le Mans, hit the web today.

To document that progress leading up to Le Mans, the series provided a detailed look at the development of the Ford GT and its drivers. In the first Chapter, titled The Decision, Ford luminaries like Bill Ford and Raj, gave us the background on the choice to revive the legendary GT. The next chapter, titled The Cutting Edge, Dave Pericak and the team discuss the challenges of simultaneously building a street car and a race car capable of competing with the best in the world. The third episode, titled Let’s Race, detailed the supercar’s racing debut at Daytona. The fourth episode, titled The Driver’s Perspective, covered a part of the racing program that is just as important as the hardware—the drivers.

With Le Mans on the immediate horizon, the series wrapped up with a reflection on the journey…

“It is exciting for me personally and for all of Ford Chip Ganassi Racing to be going to Le Mans to race, especially given the 50th anniversary of Ford's historic 1966 win,” said Chip Ganassi. “We have enjoyed racing the new Ford GT this season and expect to be strong at Le Mans.”

Of course the most exciting revelation from this last chapter of the online video series is that it sets the stage for a feature-length documentary release this fall. You don’t have to wait that long to see how the cars perform in the race, however, be sure to check out our viewing guide here so you don’t miss any of this weekend’s historic action.

Ford Performance’s five-part documentary series closes out with a look at the journey to the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The Ford GT’s dominated Le Mans qualifying and car 68 took the pole, while car 69 will start in the second position, car 67 will start in the fourth position and car 66 will start in the fifth position. These cars performed so well they received a pre-race penalty of 22 pounds and a reduction and boost, which should tighten-up the racing action.

We attended this event, it was amazing to witness history. And to be able so see and talk to all the executives, engineers, designers, drivers, and family members, in attendance. Then to be able to personally shake their hands, and congratulate them. Saying this was once in a lifetime, is the understatement of the decade.

A huge congratulations to the entire Ford, Ganassi, and multimatic teams!!!!!